Struggling to get sharp photos with D750

[Cathy1973]

So I have a question. Feels like a newb question so I'm almost embarrassed to ask but I may never learn if I don't. So be kind.

I got my D750 a couple months ago and I LOVE it. I usually use it with a 85mm f1.4 lens and together we've had some fun. I am having a hard time being CONSISTENTLY sharp though. I am NOT shooting at 1.4 - I'm usually at 2.8 - 3.5ish when I photograph kids. I'm about 15' away. The last session I kept the shutter speed at 1/250s.

I set up the camera for back button focus and some of the shots are amazing. But then others are blurry. My guess - is that it's from my own hand shaking (i'm on the ground, holding a heavy camera/lens combo, or up and down chasing 1-2 year olds.... and i had a lot of caffeine... hahaha. In this last case, the kid was sitting still so I know it's not them... it's gotta be me?

I know that 1/100 is too slow for me to handhold. So at 1/250s should that eliminate hand shaking motion blur, or do I need to go even faster? Or do I need to just give up caffeine... LOL. I can't just use a tripod because typically kids don't sit still long enough... LOL

Any other things to try to get clearer photos? I had a shot I really LOVED until I zoomed in a realized it wasn't sharp. AT ALL.

 

[samjstern]

Cathy,

what lens are you using? Did you check for lens calibration?

Most people get very sharp images from the D750. If you are using a VR lens, is the VR turned on. What picture control do you use.? What do you do your post processing with?

I am thinking it must be something you are doing.

 

[thejohnnerparty]

Don't worry. Relax. It's technique. .... Try this:

Bump your ISO. (I know, you think you don't have to, but .... it's only temporary). then, ....

Bump your SS accordingly.

If you are using AF, what are you using? Auto (AF-S / AF-C), AF-S or AF-C? .... If they are not going to be still, use AF-C perhaps with 9 focus points. If you can use AF-S (non-moving subjects), then use 1 focus point and position it on your subject if you can. If you can't focus, focus lock and recompose.

Hope this helps. .... be patient, you'll get there.

;-)

 

[MrBungle]

Hi Cathy, 1/250 is not fast enough for handheld action photos, I would pump up the iso to get at least 1/500 or better 1/1000 and up. And if there is more than one kid in the picture don't forget the depth of field too.

 

[Osvaldo Cristo]

So I have a question. Feels like a newb question so I'm almost embarrassed to ask but I may never learn if I don't. So be kind.

I got my D750 a couple months ago and I LOVE it. I usually use it with a 85mm f1.4 lens and together we've had some fun. I am having a hard time being CONSISTENTLY sharp though. I am NOT shooting at 1.4 - I'm usually at 2.8 - 3.5ish when I photograph kids. I'm about 15' away. The last session I kept the shutter speed at 1/250s.

I set up the camera for back button focus and some of the shots are amazing. But then others are blurry. My guess - is that it's from my own hand shaking (i'm on the ground, holding a heavy camera/lens combo, or up and down chasing 1-2 year olds.... and i had a lot of caffeine... hahaha. In this last case, the kid was sitting still so I know it's not them... it's gotta be me?

I know that 1/100 is too slow for me to handhold. So at 1/250s should that eliminate hand shaking motion blur, or do I need to go even faster? Or do I need to just give up caffeine... LOL. I can't just use a tripod because typically kids don't sit still long enough... LOL

Any other things to try to get clearer photos? I had a shot I really LOVED until I zoomed in a realized it wasn't sharp. AT ALL.

1. If you do not need zoom in, don´t do it
2. You need to care your handling to decide for a shutter speed. The famous 1/FL rule can work for some people, but others could require a lot more either for its own handling or for his/her image sensor resolution. I use as minimum for my D810 1/FL if I am using a lens with VR engaged and 1/(3*FL) otherwise
3. Your subject can be very active. For birds in fly, the minimum speed I use is 1/1000 second, ideally faster. Sports (and I think it could be include a very active toddler), 1/500 seconds
4. Special care if you are shooting handheld with shallow DoF. I use AF-C and maintains the mechanism active all the time when the aperture is wide (f/1.4-4). One slightly movement can put your subject completely out of focus if you are using a shallow DoF
5. Practice. Practice

All the best,

 

[Cathy1973]

1. If you do not need zoom in, don´t do it
2. You need to care your handling to decide for a shutter speed. The famous 1/FL rule can work for some people, but others could require a lot more either for its own handling or for his/her image sensor resolution. I use as minimum for my D810 1/FL if I am using a lens with VR engaged and 1/(3*FL) otherwise
3. Your subject can be very active. For birds in fly, the minimum speed I use is 1/1000 second, ideally faster. Sports (and I think it could be include a very active toddler), 1/500 seconds
4. Special care if you are shooting handheld with shallow DoF. I use AF-C and maintains the mechanism active all the time when the aperture is wide (f/1.4-4). One slightly movement can put your subject completely out of focus if you are using a shallow DoF
5. Practice. Practice

All the best,

 

[Osvaldo Cristo]

Thanks... I'm not sure what you meant by #1 - I was using a prime lens. I wasn't cropping the photo either. I just looked at it as if I was going to print an 8X10 and it looked trashy - so I knew it wasn't good enough to keep... lol

Sorry for my bad wording: I mean you do not have to spend time pixel peeping your image. You do not need to go pixel level display to have the idea how one 8"X10" will be printed.

Regards,

 

[Kaso]

I know that 1/100 is too slow for me to handhold. So at 1/250s should that eliminate hand shaking motion blur, or do I need to go even faster?

Yes, for a moving subject, you should go faster: 1/400s, 1/500s, 1/800s... Experiment.

You buy a D750, so take full advantage of its high-ISO performance. In fact, I'd rather have a sharp image at ISO 800 than a non-sharp image at ISO 100.

Stay really calm when you press the shutter release. Any level of excitement will materialize on the image -- this may sound weird, but it's true. Mental calmness plus bodily stillness count for a lot.

Last, but perhaps most important: Use Back Button Focus + AF-C + CL.

Track the subject and take multiple shots. You can't choose if you have only one shot.

 

[CAlanS]

Surprised no one mentioned it, well the advise about calmness is part of this. Breathing is important. Breathe reasonably deeply (3 breaths is a good number), then let about half the last breath out and hold your breath just before you shoot. Of course tuck in your elbows and hold the camera with your left hand cradling the body and the lens. You can search YouTube for "Camera hand holding .." or "Camera handling" and find a few good tutorials if you need it. Good luck.

Alan

 

[scokill]

1. If you do not need zoom in, don´t do it
2. You need to care your handling to decide for a shutter speed. The famous 1/FL rule can work for some people, but others could require a lot more either for its own handling or for his/her image sensor resolution. I use as minimum for my D810 1/FL if I am using a lens with VR engaged and 1/(3*FL) otherwise
3. Your subject can be very active. For birds in fly, the minimum speed I use is 1/1000 second, ideally faster. Sports (and I think it could be include a very active toddler), 1/500 seconds
4. Special care if you are shooting handheld with shallow DoF. I use AF-C and maintains the mechanism active all the time when the aperture is wide (f/1.4-4). One slightly movement can put your subject completely out of focus if you are using a shallow DoF
5. Practice. Practice

All the best,

--
O.Cristo - An Amateur Photographer
Opinions of men are almost as various as their faces - so many men so many minds. B. Franklin

Thanks... I'm not sure what you meant by #1 - I was using a prime lens. I wasn't cropping the photo either. I just looked at it as if I was going to print an 8X10 and it looked trashy - so I knew it wasn't good enough to keep... lol

#2 - Yeah I thought 250 was close to the 1/3FL to stop it - but I must be shakier than most! haha

#3 - My subject CAN be active - but in this case they weren't. They were being really good and sitting in this little prop bed I had. It's not a hand of foot that's blurred - it's the entire photo - so that's all me. But I'll try a minimum of 1/500 next time to see if that helps. (And I'll start weening myself off caffeine - couldn't hurt... lol)

#4 - I had it on AF-C but on back button so I would let go once I thought I had it in focus. I had it around F3.2 so I wasn't shooting SUPER shallow... some of the shots turned out great. I'll try boosting the ISO to shoot faster while keeping the Aperture where it was and see if that works.

#5 - ALWAYS! But always open to suggestions on other things to check.

I'm partly wondering if back button focus isn't for me. My thumb shakes more than my other fingers when i try to press the button so maybe that's adding to my problem... (I'm guessing years of knitting and crocheting and computer work probably have me headed to carpal tunnel town in a few years if i'm not careful!)

I'll keep playing around with it - I want to try out my 70-200 f2.8 lens but it's even heavier! So we shall see how that goes... hahahaha

--
----
Cathy
http://www.cathykurtzphotography.com

You appear to have experience and folks have given you basic things to check. Back button is neither here nor there in the equation and if you are uncomfortable with it then use shutter.

Folks are also giving you advice for action and if you can't get sharp photos for portraits and stationary objects then I don't believe shutter speed of 2,3, or more x focal length is the solution. Perhaps you can post some shots that might help determining the issue.

 

[L Copps]

What focusing mode are you using? Are you using AFS, AFC, or AFA. Are you using group focus, single point, 9 point, or 51 point? Its possible the camera is picking a focus point not on the subject.

 

[JacquesC]

So I have a question. Feels like a newb question so I'm almost embarrassed to ask but I may never learn if I don't. So be kind.

I got my D750 a couple months ago and I LOVE it. I usually use it with a 85mm f1.4 lens and together we've had some fun. I am having a hard time being CONSISTENTLY sharp though. I am NOT shooting at 1.4 - I'm usually at 2.8 - 3.5ish when I photograph kids. I'm about 15' away. The last session I kept the shutter speed at 1/250s.

I set up the camera for back button focus and some of the shots are amazing. But then others are blurry. My guess - is that it's from my own hand shaking (i'm on the ground, holding a heavy camera/lens combo, or up and down chasing 1-2 year olds.... and i had a lot of caffeine... hahaha. In this last case, the kid was sitting still so I know it's not them... it's gotta be me?

I know that 1/100 is too slow for me to handhold. So at 1/250s should that eliminate hand shaking motion blur, or do I need to go even faster? Or do I need to just give up caffeine... LOL. I can't just use a tripod because typically kids don't sit still long enough... LOL

Any other things to try to get clearer photos? I had a shot I really LOVED until I zoomed in a realized it wasn't sharp. AT ALL.

 

[Louis van Zyl]

Hi there

Are you shooting RAW?
If so you must sharpen the photo afterwards or it will appear to be soft.

 

[herbymel]

2.8 - 3.2 is still a fairly shallow DOF so any mistakes you may have are going to show pretty easily. You many want to keep it there, but it may be part of your problem. If you're doing that, and add a little shake it's going to show up the problems pretty quickly.

 

[samjstern]

your head must be spinning. Some many suggestions, some confusing some contradicting.

Everyone has good intensions and is trying to help.

I have a suggestion, I would like you to try.

1. Put camera in manual mode (M) Shutter speed to 1/250, Aperture at 5.6

2. Set ISO to auto ISO, (see your manual)

3. Adjust your exposure by using the +/- exposure comp button.

4. Go back to using the shutter release button , not the af/on button.

5. Single point focus, half press to lock, then full press to take the shot

5. Turn the VR OFF on your lens

6. If you are constantly talking to the kids while taking shots, stop talking while pressing the shutter release. Like a previous posted said, it's like shooting a rifle. Breathing and holding breath is a technique that must be practiced.

7. Did you calibrate your lenses for fine tune focus??

I am assuming you are using the 70- 200 . Are you on your stomach on your 2 elbows, or sitting .

On stomach on 2 elbows is a very bad technique for steady shots. Very difficult to do.

If sitting, learn to put one elbow in your stomach to stabilize the camera.

Let us know how these shots turn out, remember Auto ISO and manual mode.

Good luck, I am sure you will get this figured out

 

[Kaso]

I got my D750 a couple months ago and I LOVE it. I usually use it with a 85mm f1.4 lens and together we've had some fun. I am having a hard time being CONSISTENTLY sharp though. I am NOT shooting at 1.4 - I'm usually at 2.8 - 3.5ish when I photograph kids. I'm about 15' away. The last session I kept the shutter speed at 1/250s.

85mm f1.4

what lens are you using?

85mm f1.4

I am assuming you are using the 70- 200 .

85mm f1.4

 

[j_photo]

If you really want to get to the bottom of what's going on, post some sample images. Otherwise everyone is just guessing.

 

[steelhead3]

Try this little technique, instead of stabbing at the shutter release, roll your finger over it with enough finger pressure to fire the shutter. With no stabilization, your lens can move quite a bit with the downward pressure. It may be easier to move AF off the back button so that you are constantly in contact with the shutter release.

 

[cosmicnode]

So I have a question. Feels like a newb question so I'm almost embarrassed to ask but I may never learn if I don't. So be kind.

I got my D750 a couple months ago and I LOVE it. I usually use it with a 85mm f1.4 lens and together we've had some fun. I am having a hard time being CONSISTENTLY sharp though. I am NOT shooting at 1.4 - I'm usually at 2.8 - 3.5ish when I photograph kids. I'm about 15' away. The last session I kept the shutter speed at 1/250s.

I set up the camera for back button focus and some of the shots are amazing. But then others are blurry. My guess - is that it's from my own hand shaking (i'm on the ground, holding a heavy camera/lens combo, or up and down chasing 1-2 year olds.... and i had a lot of caffeine... hahaha. In this last case, the kid was sitting still so I know it's not them... it's gotta be me?

I know that 1/100 is too slow for me to handhold. So at 1/250s should that eliminate hand shaking motion blur, or do I need to go even faster? Or do I need to just give up caffeine... LOL. I can't just use a tripod because typically kids don't sit still long enough... LOL

Any other things to try to get clearer photos? I had a shot I really LOVED until I zoomed in a realized it wasn't sharp. AT ALL.

 

[Kaso]

Try this little technique, instead of stabbing at the shutter release, roll your finger over it with enough finger pressure to fire the shutter. With no stabilization, your lens can move quite a bit with the downward pressure.

Good point.

I've seen cases where, in the excitement of capturing a scene, the user presses hard on the shutter release button, causing camera shake. I've been one such user!